LALITPUR, AUGUST 20

Tribhuvan Army Club and Lalitpur High won the titles of the first National Open Basketball Tournament here at the Nakhipot Youth Club today.

TAC defeated Royal Sports Central 77-65 in the men's section final. TAC opened with a 10-8 lead before Royal cut the deficit by taking the second quarter 26-25. The Army team then dominated the third period winning it 20-13 and sealed the victory with a 22018 win in the final quarter.

Ayush Singh of TAC top scored in the match with 19 points. Singh was later named the Most Valuable Player of the tournament and he earned Rs 5,000 and gift hampers. Champions TAC received Rs 50,000 along with the trophy, while Royal got Rs 25,000. In women's section, Lalitpur High edged past hosts Nakhipot Youth Club 37-35. Lalitpur High opened with a 9-8 lead before Nakhipot hit back in the second quarter and won it 11-5 to take a five-point lead. Lalitpur High bounced back in the third period and they won it 14-6 to open up three-point lead going into the final quarter. Nakhipot won the final period 10-9 but that was not enough for the hosts' team to avert the defeat. Asmit Thapa played a key role in Lalitpur High's victory contributing 15 points in the match. Thapa was declared MVP and she earned Rs 5,000 and gift hampers. Along with the trophy, Lalitpur High received Rs 30,000, while Nakhipot got Rs 15,000.

A total of 16 teams - 12 in men's section and four in women's category - took part in the tournament organised by Nakhipot Youth Club. Bagmati Province's Member of Parliament Rajkaji Maharjan, Nepal Basketball Association General Secretary Narendra Thapa and Nakhipot Youth Club President Ganga Sunwar handed over the prizes to the winners.

A version of this article appears in the print on August 21, 2022 of The Himalayan Times.